Adjustable folded dipole with rotatable housing

ABSTRACT

A television antenna which includes a housing and an elongated flexible signal-receiving loop. The loop is formed into a threelobed configuration, each of these lobes projecting outwardly from the housing. A series of guides and rollers fixed in the housing permit the central projecting lobe of the loop to be retracted into or extended from the housing to any desired degree, with a corresponding extension or retraction, respectively, of the other two lobes on either side of the central lobe. Further, the housing is mounted for rotation on a base, which is adapted to be stationed on any flat surface.

United States Patent Robert D. Kahn Rockville Center, N.Y. 37,599

May 15, 1970 Nov. 30, I971 Fedtro, Inc.

Rockvllle Center, N.Y.

Inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee ADJUSTABLE FOLDED DIPOLE WITH Primary Examiner- Eli Lieberman Anorney Amster & Rothstein ABSTRACT: A television antenna which includes a housing and an elongated flexible signal-receiving loop. The loop is formed into a three-lobed configuration, each of these lobes projecting outwardly from the housing. A series of guides and rollers fixed in the housing permit the central projecting lobe of the loop to be retracted into or extended from the housing to any desired degree, with a corresponding extension or retraction, respectively, of the other two lobes on either side of the central lobe. Further, the housing is mounted for rotation on a base, which is adapted to be stationed on any flat surface.

PATENIEDnnvsomn 3.624.657

SHEET 2 0F 2 0 VHF TZRAWAMMS 4 INvIcN'Hm. To ROBERT D. KAHN TERM/M445 ATTORNEYS ADJUSTABLE FOLDED DIPOLE WITH ROTATABLE HOUSING The present invention relates to an antenna and especially to an antenna for a television receiver.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved television antenna which includes an elongated signal-receiving loop formed into a three-lobed configuration, with these lobes having the capability of being elongated or retracted with a corresponding opposite movement of the other lobes so that the loop configuration may be customized to accommodate specific signal-receiving conditions.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an antenna of the character described wherein the aforesaid unit is capable of mass production so as to provide the consumer market with a high quality antenna at a modest cost.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a television antenna of the character described wherein a base is provided for enabling the antenna to stand on any fiat surface, with the main body of the antenna being rotatable on said base to enable further sensitive tuning of the antenna.

In general, and in accordance with the teaching of the present invention, there is provided an antenna adapted to be connected to a signal-receiving unit and which is especially useful in connection with a television receiver. The antenna itself includes a housing and an elongated flexible signal-receiving loop. The loop has a three-lobed configuration, with both the ends of the loop and internal bends of the loop being retained by guides and rollers within the housing. The portions of the loop between the mentioned ends and the bends form lobes which project from the housing, and the housing is arranged so that these lobes may be extended from or retracted into the housing to any desired extent, with a corresponding but opposed change in the length of the other lobes. Thereby, the central lobe and the pair of side lobes are correspondingly adjustable and the user may set the lobes for all reception conditions so as to attain very fine tuning of his television set. Further, a four-line conductor cable runs from the loop in the housing to the VHF and UHF terminals of the television receiver and a switch in the housing selectively connects the antenna loop to the UHF terminals or the VHF terminals as desired by the user. Still further, a base is provided which can be placed upon any flat surface, and the housing of the antenna is rotatably mounted on said base so that the loop as a whole may be rotated to achieve signals as clearly as possible.

Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon a consideration of the fol lowing detailed description in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

F lG. l is a three-quartered, front perspective view of the antenna of the present invention, the lobes of the antenna being broken and shortened for the purpose of the drawings;

F IG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the antenna taken substantially along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front, elevational view of the antenna with a housing wall removed so as to expose the internal components thereof and taken substantially along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of the television antenna;

FIG. 5 is a view of the television antenna similar to FIG. I, but showing the housing rotated with respect to the base; and

FIG. 6 is a view showing the base coupled with the housing for purposes of shipment of the unit.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, and initially to FIG. 1, there is provided an antenna 10 adapted to receive electromagnetic signals, and especially adapted for use with a television receiver. The antenna includes, generally, a housing 12, a base 14, and an elongated signal-receiving loop 16.

The housing is generally rectangular in configuration and hollow, and includes left and right side walls, respectively, 18, 20, top and bottom sidewalls, respectively, 22, 24, and front and backwalls, respectively, 26, 28. The aforesaid walls 18 through 28 form a hollow chamber 30 within the housing l2.

The loop 16 is an elongated metallic member. Desirably, the loop 16 is formed from a relatively thin, flat piece of stock which has a slight side-to-side curvature, as seen in FIG. 1, and is formed from ribbon steel." Specifically, the steel is a commercial grade carbon tool steel forged into a curved cross section, then plated in turn with copper, nickel and finally chrome. After the foregoing, the loop is heat-treated to recover its spring-back" effect. The loop 16 is therefore relatively stiff, flexible, and tends to return to an elongated, straight length after it is bent.

The loop is formed into a three-lobed configuration, including a leftmost lobe 32 which projects outwardly from the housing, and which projects more or less along a diagonally drawn line from the housing, a central lobe 34 which projects upwardly from the housing along a line centered between and parallel to the left and right sidewalls 18, 20, and a rightmost lobe 36 which projects outwardly from the housing 12 generally along a diagonal which crosses the diagonal along which the leftmost lobe projects. Each of the aforesaid lobes includes an advance reach, respectively 320, 34a and 36, a turn, respectively, 32b, 34b and 36b, and a return reach 320, 34c and 360.

Guide means are contained within the housing 12 to retain the loop 16 in the aforesaid three-lobed configuration and further to enable each of the lobes to be extended out of or retracted into the housing, with a corresponding movement of other lobes. More specifically, the guide means enables the central lobe 34 to be extended from or retracted into the housing 12, with the side lobes 32, 36 being retracted into or extended from the housing, respectively, to a corresponding degree. The guide means includes means fastening the loop ends 38a, b within said housing. Said fastening means includes a pair of small, diagonal support walls 40, 42 located in the lower, right-hand and left-hand comers of the housing 12. The support walls run between the side walls 18, 20 and the bottom side wall 24. The ends 38a, b, of the loop 16 are fixed over said support walls 40, 42 and are retained in place by fasteners 44. Desirably, an additional short length 46 of metal is situated between each loop end 38 and its associated support wall 40, 42 and extends to a small extent beyond the side walls [8, 20. Each such length is bound to its associated loop end by a plastic sleeve 47 which is heat shrunk. These lengths 46 give additional strength to the loop at points at which they might have a tendency to bend due to the weight of the remaining portion of the side lobes 32, 36. The aforesaid ends 38a, b pass through the side walls 18, 20 by passing through entrance slots 48, 50 in the sidewalls, respectively, 18, 20.

The guide means further includes a pair of guide walls 52, 54 which project diagonally downwardly from the top sidewall 22, internally of the housing 12, and which are immediately adjacent to another pair of entrance slots 56, 58. The slot 56 enables the return reach 320 of the lobe 32 to pass into the interior of the housing, and the guide wall 52 supports said return reach at this location. The slot 58 permits the advance reach 36a of the lobe 36 to pass from the interior of the housing to the exterior thereof and the guide wall 54 supports said advance reach at this location.

The aforesaid guide means further includes an additional pair of entrance slots, 60, 62 formed in the top wall 22 and an additional pair of both upwardly and downwardly projecting guide walls 64, 66 fixed to the top wall 22. The guide walls 64, 66 and the portion of the top wall 22 therebetween, form an H configuration. The slot 60 enables the advance reach 341: of the lobe 34 to pass from the interior of the housing 12 through the top sidewall 22 to the exterior thereof, while the guide wall 64 guides and supports said reach at this location, and similarly, the slot 62 enables the return reach 34c of the lobe 34 to pass through the top sidewall 22 into the interior of the housing 12 and the guide wall 66 supports and guides the advance reach at this location.

Moreover, both the guide wall 64 and the guide wall 66 have a somewhat outwardly concave shape, insuring that the exterior faces of the walls frictionally engage lower portions of the advance reach 34a and the return reach 34c of the central lobe 34.

The aforesaid guide means further includes guide rollers. More specifically, a first pair of guide rollers 68, 70 are situated within the housing below the top wall 22, and a second set of guide rollers 72, 74 are also situated within the housing 12 below the top wall 22. The guide rollers are cylindrical in shape, and each guide roller rotates on a tapered shaft 76 which projects from the back wall 28. Thetapering of the interior of the guide roller permits them to rotate easily as well as to be removed readily from their forming mold. Since there are four guide rollers, 68 through 74, there are, of course, four shafts 76. Within each set of guide rollers, there is an upper guide roller and a lower guide roller, and as best seen in FIG. 3, the loop passes therebetween. In doing so, and between the return reach 32c of the left lobe 32 and the advance reach 34a of the center lobe, the loop is formed into a bend 78 and, similarly, between the return reach, 34c of the center lobe 34 and the advanced reach 360 of the right lobe 36, there is formed another bend 80, and each of these bends 78, 80

passes between its associated pair of guide rollers 68, 70 and 72, 74.

With the foregoing guide means now having been described, it should be appreciated that when the center lobe 34 is retracted into the housing 12, by pushing the same toward the housing, the lower portions of both the advance reach 34a and return reach 340 of the center lobe 34 pass into housing, pass between the sets of rollers 68, 70 and 72, 40, and thereby shift the return reach 320 of the left lobe 32 outwardly. At the same time, the return reach 34c of the center lobe 34 moves downwardly, passes between the guide rollers 72, 74, so that the advance reach 360 of the right lobe 36 moves outwardly. Hence, when the center lobe 34 is moved downwardly to a certain extent, the right lobe 36 and the left lobe 32 both move outwardly, these side lobes moving outwardly away from the housing to one-half of the extent of the depression of the center lobe. Conversely, when the center lobe 34 is moved upwardly by pulling the same from the housing, and is thereby extended from the housing, both the right lobe 36 and the left lobe 32 are retracted inwardly, again to one-half of the extent that the center lobe 34 is moved outwardly.

In the desired form of the present antenna, a knob 82 of nonconductive material is provided for grasping the top of the center lobe 34. More specifically, the knob 82 is generally rectangular in its top plan and has a pair of internal passageways 84 formed on each side thereof, into which upper portions of the center lobe 34, and more specifically, the upper ends of the advance reach 34a and return reach 340 enter. A crossbolt 86 connects these ends mechanically and electrically, while serving further to fix the ends within the knob. It is desirable for a user to grasp the center lobe 34 by the knob 82 so that he does not interfere with the receipt by the loop of electromagnetic signals.

The antenna is adapted to be connected to both the UHF and VHF terminals of a television receiver. For this purpose, and as indicated schematically in FIG. 4, a four-cable line 88 comprises four elongated conductors which lead to a manually operable double-pole, double-throw switch 90, the body of which is fixed within the housing 12, and which protrudes for manual operation through the front wall 26 (see FIG. 1) of the housing 12. The switch has a pair of lines 92, 92 which are connected to the ends of the loop respectively 38a, 38b. The switch 90 serves to connect the lines 92, 92, either to the two lines running to the UHF terminals or to the two lines running to the VHF terminals.

In a desired form of the present invention, the housing is mounted for rotation upon a base 14. The base may be stationed on any flat surface and if desired, may be fastened as by screws directly to the television set. The base includes a fiat top wall 96 and four outwardly diverging sidewalls 98. A collar 100 projects downwardly from the bottom sidewall 24 of the housing, which is divided by a number of longitudinal slits 102 into a number of elongated tabs 104. A circumferential ridge 106 is formed on the leading edge ofthe collar 100.

The top wall 96 of the base 14 has a central aperture 108 formed therein, which is slightly undersized as compared with the diameter of the collar, with a flange 109 surrounding it and a retaining wall 110 formed therebelow. As the collar passes therethrough, the tabs will be biased inwardly, this being permitted by the existence of the tabs 104. When the leading edge of the collar, that is, the ridge 106, has passed by the retaining wall- 110 formed directly below the aperture 108, the tabs 104 will spring outwardly and the ridge 106 will be positioned underneath said retaining wall 1 10 and will tend to retain the collar in place, thereby holding the housing to the base 14. By virtue of the aforesaid arrangement, the housing 12 can rotate with respect to and on the base 14, and the rotation thereof may be seen by a comparison of FIGS. 1 and 5 of the drawings.

For purposes of shipment, the base 14 and the housing 12 may be coupled. Specifically, the backwall 28 has a circular depression 112 formed therein, which projects into the chamber 30, but which opens externally of the housing (see FIG. 2). The retaining wall 110 surrounding the aperture 108 of the base 14 fits snugly into the depression 112 to enable coupling at this location. Further, the sidewall 98 of the housing 12 has a number of appropriate slots 114 (see FIG. 1) so that the loop portions can fit therein, when the aforesaid coupling takes place. The coupling of the base 14 to the housing 12 strengthens the entire unit during shipment, while also permitting the antenna to be packed in a small space.

As best seen in FlGS. 2 and 3 of the drawings the conductor 88 enters the housing 12 through a slot 116, and thereupon passes into the chamber 30. To prevent the conductor 88 from being accidentally pulled out of the housing, a headed stud, 118 passes through an aperture in the interior portion of the conductor 88 and is affixed to the wall of the housing.

It should now be appreciated that the aforesaid description sets forth an antenna which is relatively economical in manufacture, but which can be adjusted to an endless number of configurations whereby the most desirable configuration can be obtained for the individual location of a specific electromagnetic signal receiver. As has been mentioned, the three-lobed configuration can be altered between numerous positions in which the center lobe projects upwardly to a lesser or greater extent, and correspondingly the pair of side lobes project to a [greater] or [lesser extent, respectively. Moreover, the housing can be rotated on the base for an additional tuning efiect. ln general, in the lower channel range, the center lobe is retracted towards the housing while the side lobes are extended, and for the higher channel range, the center lobe is extended away from the housing while the side lobes are retracted into the housing. Again, the foregoing general instructions are often altered depending upon the specific location of the signal receiving unit.

A latitude of modification, change and substitution is intended in the foregoing disclosure and in some instances some features of the invention will be employed without a corresponding use of other features. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims be construed broadly and in a manner consistent with the spirit and scope of the invention herein.

What is claimed is:

1. An' antenna adapted to be connected to a signalreceiving unit, comprising: a housing, said housing including a back wall defining a circular, central depression; an elongated, flexible, signal-receiving loop defining lobes; guide means for retaining spaced ends and bends of said loop in said housing so that said lobes of said loop project outwardly from the housing, each loop being retractable into and extendable out of said housing with an associated but opposed extension and retraction of another lobe; said antenna further including a base and means for rotatably attaching said housing to said base; said base including a central, depending, circular, retaining wall matable with said circular depression, a front wall defining slots matable with said loop, means for detaching said base from said rotatable attachment means and said base defining a housing chamber such that said base is detachable from said rotatable attachment means and matable with said housing with said walls being of H-shaped configuration, and said side lobes defining short lengths of said loop folded over onto the ends of said loop in order to provide additional strength to said loop at points at which said loop has a tendency to bend due to the weight of said sides lobes.

l t i i 

1. An antenna adapted to be connected to a signal-receiving unit, comprising: a housing, said housing including a back wall defining a circular, central depression; an elongated, flexible, signal-receiving loop defining lobes; guide means for retaining spaced ends and bends of said loop in said housing so that said lobes of said loop project outwardly from the housing, each loop being retractable into and extendable out of said housing with an associated but opposed extension and retraction of another lobe; said antenna further including a base and means for rotatably attaching said housing to said base; said base including a central, depending, circular, retaining wall matable with said circular depression, a front wall defining slots matable with said loop, means for detaching said base from said rotatable attachment means and said base defining a housing chamber such that said base is detachable from said rotatable attachment means and matable with said housing with said housing chamber enveloping said housing during shipment to determine the extent of said base and said housing together to be substantially the same as said housing alone.
 2. The invention according to the claim 1, wherein said loop is formed by said guide means into a center lobe and a pair of opposed side lobes, said guide means including guide walls to direct the center lobe as it passes into said housing, said guide walls being of H-shaped configuration, and said side lobes defining short lengths of said loop folded over onto the ends of said loop in order to provide additional strength to said loop at points at which said loop has a tendency to bend due to the weight of said sides lobes. 